Variable electric contact for advertising purposes



Jan. 12, 1932.

VARIABLE ELECTRIC CONTACT FOR ADVERTISING PURPOSES Filed Dec. 19. 1930 umum T. o. BATEN-IAN 7 1,841,080

Patented Jan. 12, 1932 1 TALBOT 0. Barnum, or DALLAsmExAs VARIABLE ELECTRIC CONTACT FOR ADVERTISING PURPOSES Application filed December 19,1930; Serial No. 503,475.

Wwhich can be quicklymanufactured and ineconomically andwhich devices will be highstalled and which will attract attention at any time and at any place and which is simple in operation andfwhich can be operated "at smallcostiso that advertising can be done ly efficient indiplay advertising and for amusement purposes. Other objects and ad- I vantages will be fully explained in the follow description and the invention will be; more particularly pointed out in'th'e claims.

Reference is bad to the accompanying drawings which forma part of this application. f

Fig. 1 is anelevation of partly in section,

Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic view of the variable contact making devices.

Similar characters of reference are used the apparatus,

25 to indicate the same parts throughout the several views.

This invention includes a ring 1 which is supported by posts 2, preferably four posts, which rest on a base 3. The ring 1 is preferably a flat wooden ring. A cylindrical casing 4 is supported by brackets 5 which are supported from the ring platform 1; The casing 4 is a guide for the ball carriers 7 and the casing 4 has vertical slots 6 for the movement of the carriers '7. The balls, hereinafter described, fall into a funnel shaped chute 8 and run out through the discharge pipe or chute 9. The chute or pipe 9 is normally closed by a swinging gate 11. A revolving wheel 12 is rigid with a shaft 13 which is journaled in bearings 14 and 15. The bearing 15 is a part of the bracket 16 which is attached to the ring 17 of insulating material. The wheel 12 carries a pocket 18. As this wheel is revolved it will carry the pocket 18 and by the time the pocket 18 is carried up to the receiving chute 19, the pocket will be tilted far enough over to dump the ball into the chute 19. The chute 19 is supported by the bracket 16 and by a bracket 20 which is attached to the casing 4. The

wheel 12 carries a cam 21 which actuates de- PATENT OFFICE.

vices for opening the gate'll. The gate 11 i is pivotally mounted on the chute 9. A le- I ver 22 is fulcrumed on the bracket 16 and a link bar23 is pivotally connected to the lever 22 and pivot-ally connected to the gate 11. When the lever 22 is actuated by the'cam 21, the lever will actuate the link bar 23 to open the gate 11 to let a ball pass into the cup 18. These operations go on continuously and successively as long as the machine is running.

The halls fall within the casing 4 when they drop from the receiving chute 19 and down on a rotating table 24. The balls drop approximately at the middle point of the circular table 24 and the centrifugal force will drive the balls outwardly and cause the balls to strike up-standing pins 25 which are rigid with rotating table or platform, 24. There. is an element of uncertainty as to which pin 25 a ball will strike. This uncertainty is one of the objects sought by thisinvention. The ball will fall into some one of the carriers 7. When a ball falls into a carrier 7, the weight of the ball is sufficient to force the carrier 7 downwardly towards the funnelshaped chute 8. The carrier 7 will stop at the top of the chute 8 and the ball carried by the carrier will roll into the chute to be dis-' posed of as previously-described; The table 24 is rigid with a shaft 26 which carries a bevel gear wheel 27. This wheel is driven by a bevel gear wheel 28 which is driven by a motor 29. The gear wheel 27 meshes with and drives a bevel gear wheel 30 and this wheel drives ashaft 31 which drives the pulley 32. The pulley32 drives the belt 33 for driving the wheel 12. I

The uncertainty of the operation of the carriers 7 is accomplished by the mechanism above described and in the manner above described. This functioning of the machine is utilized to obtain thevar'iation in the operation of the contacts below described. The machine has as many contacts as there-are carriers7 and every time aball falls, a circuit-is closed, but there is no certaintyasto which circuit will be closed. The carriers 7 are all fulcrumed on a common wire or rod 34'which is supported by suitable brackets 35 which are attached to the flat ring 1. All the brackets 35 will be in electrical connection with the wire 34 and each negative arm of a circuit will be grounded at 36. A wire 37 will be the negative wire of a circuit. A rim or ring 17 is attached to supports 38. A wire 39 forms the positive arm of each circuit. A movable contact 40 is carried by a carrier lever 7 and is in electrical connection with the wire 34 and a tired contact 41 is in electrical connection with each wire 39. Every time a ball swings a carrier 7 down a circuit is closed by the contact member 40 coming in contact with afixed contact 41. The circuit is held closed for a period of time by the following described means. A disk 42 is made stationary with the supports 2 by brackets 43. A disk 44 is loosely hung to ring 1 by hangers 45 which project through enlarged openings in disk 42. The disk 44 will have aslight horizontally rocking movement by reason of being loosely hung. A counterweight 46 is provided for each carrier lever 7 and loosely hung thereon. A rod 47 extends from the weight 46 downwardly through the disks 42 and 44 loosely. The openings through these disks are enlarged for the passage of the rod 47 and a catch 48 carried by the rod. When the carrier 7 swings downwardly to let a ball out, the catch 48 will be drawn upwardly through the disks 42 and 44. The catch 48 is beveled on one side and will be forced out of line of natural gravity so that the rod will swing back and make the catch 48 rest on the disk 42 for a support. The electric circuit which has been closed will remain closed as long as the catch 48 rests on disk 42. Provision is made for causing the catch 48 to be shoved ofl of disk 42 so that the counterweight 46 will drop through the disks 42 and 44 and draw the carrier 7 back to inoperative position. This action will draw the contact member 40 away from the contact 41 and so break the circuit. All the circuits will be made and broken in the same way. A machine with twenty-four circuits is in operation. Any number of circuits may be provided for. A common tripping device is provided for breaking all the circuits. The cam 21 carries a lug 49. A trip 50 is rigid with the disk 44. When the wheel 12 moves the lug 49 against the trip 50, the trip 50 will move the disk 44 relative to disk 42 to shove the catch 48 off the disk 42. The weight 46 is suflicient to pull the carrier 7 back to normal position.

A guard 51 is provided to make the balls fall into the cup 18.

The circuit wires 87 and 39 are to be operatively' connected to any desired display de vices and the display will be timed by the devices above set forth to run periodically and intermittently.

WVhat I claim, is,-

1. Electrical advertising devices comprising a rotatable table horizontally disposed, means for systematically droppin balls on said table, upstanding pins on said table for deflecting said balls, pivotally mounted carriers adapted to receive balls thrown from said table to be actuated by said balls and contact making devices to be actuated by said carriers for closing an electric circuit.

2. Electrical advertising apparatus comprising an electric circuit normally open, a rotatable table horizontally disposed, means for systematically dropping balls on said table, upstanding pins rigid with said table for deflecting said balls at random, carriers disposed about said table and adapted to receive balls so deflected by said pins, and to be actuated by said balls, and electrical contact making devices actuated by said carriers to close said circuit.

3. Electrical advertising apparatus comprising an electric circuit normally open, a. circular rotatable table or platform horizontally disposed, means for systematically dropping balls on said table, upstanding pins rigid with said table for deflecting said balls at random, carriers disposed about the periphery of said table and adapted to receive balls so deflected by said pins and to be actuated by said balls, electrical contact making devices to be actuated by said carriers, and means for collecting said balls and redropping the same on said table.

In testimony whereof, I set my hand, this 24th day of August, 1926.

TALBOT O. BATEMAN. 

